Thursday, December 2, 2010

Christmas Gifts the handmade way!

It is the time of year for gifts and fun, but I find that the spirit of the season is so often lost in the chaos of consumerism. I hate going to the mall at the best of times, but in Dec the mall is like a bomb of discontent. Just walking through it to pick up sweats for my ever growing behind and belly, I found myself thinking 'I wonder if my eyelashes are long enough' and 'oh gosh, I wish I could fit into those clothes'.

We don't have cable tv in our house but whenever I am around it, (or even listening to the radio in the car) I feel bombarded with 'limited time only' offers that make me feel as though I am missing something in life....

For me, those thoughts are sad. For the mass market media, those thoughts are EXACTLY what they are looking for! They WANT you to feel discontent with your life and need more... always more.

It's time to just step off that bandwagon.

Now, am I saying we shouldn't purchase gifts this time of year? No, of course not. But personally, my money will not be going to the CEO of Aberchrombie or Walmart. I would rather my cash go to a person than a company. And if it is a company, let it be a small and well made one. Not a huge conglomerate that stems to suck the life out of the smaller Ma and Pa places.

Over the next week I am going to be featuring some of my friends who are amazingly talented in their arts and make items that far surpass the ones you would find at the mall! Clothing, soap, dolls, and toys... all of which were made with love and care and I am crazy excited to share some of my personal favorites with you! I even have some coupon codes to share!

2 comments

I couldn't agree with your words more! And I am SOOOOO excited to see all the links and coupons to your favorite handmade shops. I will wait impatiently for it. I too am doing a handmade Christmas and though I'd love to say similar words on my blog, I'm not quite brave enough. I have many in my life who think I'm crazy or "cute" for making all handmade. They also think it's a money issue. I don't make things because I don't have the money to spend at Wal Mart, I don't WANT to spend it at Wal Mart. Ok, vent over. It's just nice to have others online with the same ideals since no one around me feels this way. Thanks in advance for the links.